Liverpool Injury News: Jurgen Klopp gives update on Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah after FA Cup win vs Chelsea
Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk were both taken off against Chelsea in the FA Cup final due to suspected injuries. The Egyptian star surprisingly went down with discomfort just moments after LFC fans cheered Alisson Becker getting back to his feet after Marcos Alonso’s challenge.
van Dijk, meanwhile, was taken off for extra time, with Joel Matip taking his place alongside Ibrahima Konate. The Reds finished the game 0-0 after two hours of football against Chelsea in a domestic cup final for the second time this season.
And they went on to beat the Blues on penalties once again. Cesar Azplicueta’s miss was cancelled out by Sadio Mane having his decisive spot-kick saved by Edouard Mendy to send the shootout into sudden death.
Alisson Becker produced a big save to set the stage for Kostas Tsimikas, who calmly slotted the ball in to send Liverpool fans into hysterics. But amidst the highs of a cup win, some fans would have been worried about the situation surrounding two of our biggest players.
With a UEFA Champions League final in Paris against Real Madrid two weeks later, it is imperative we have our best players fit and firing. And Klopp has assuaged some of the fear our fans would have harboured by claiming to ESPN (h/t Express) that both subs were precautionary measures.
“I think [Salah and Van Dijk] are kind of OK. I don’t think they will be ready for Tuesday, to be honest… I don’t think they would have been ready for Tuesday anyway! But I think they are alright, it was more of a precaution.”
And according to Paul Joyce (h/t Eurosport), Salah was asked if he would be fit for the UCL final. His response was simple. “Of course”.
Salah missed the majority of the 2018 Champions League final due to a shoulder injury and has been vocal about his desire to take revenge against Los Blancos. The former AS Roma man was seen going down the tunnel after being subbed off, and later, in a protective knee gear.
van Dijk, meanwhile, stayed on the bench throughout the extra time and did not look in pain or discomfort. But then again, we are talking about a player who walked off the pitch with no assistance despite an ACL injury against Everton last season.
More Liverpool News
- Transfer News: Sadio Mane to stay at Liverpool if he gets a bumper new contract
- Chelsea Injury News: N’Golo Kante returns to training for FA Cup final vs Liverpool
- Jurgen Klopp gives seal of approval to Liverpool pursuing Aberdeen right-back Calvin Ramsay
Hopefully, the Dutch colossus is back in time for the final. The news around the two seems to be positive as of now and it is best to rest them in our next PL game with the UCL final in mind.
